An Uncommon Man: The Triumph of Herbert Hoover [Hardcover]

Richard Norton Smith (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 488 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster; 1st edition (June 1987)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 067146034X
• ISBN-13: 978-0671460341
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.3 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #694,748 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

33 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A good book for all presidential history buffs., August 24, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Uncommon Man: The Triumph of Herbert Hoover (Paperback)

Smith does a nice job of showing Hoover as both a politician and a dedicated fund raiser for a variety of charities. He explains in detail many of the problems Hoover faced while in office, and that the depression was not "cured" by FDR as many people would have you believe. Obviously, there is an element of bias in Smith's work given that he is the curator for the Gerald Ford museum and a devout Republican. But, he does provide a balance of Hoover's good and bad points; apparrently he wasn't the easiest to get along with which makes sense given his difficulty in dealing with Congress. I wish the book had more detail regarding Hoover's upbringing, although Smith in the introduction noted that was not his intention. I think more background into Hoover as a child and his religious heritage would help put some of his actions and philosophies into better perspective. Overall, I enjoyed reading the book and have gained more respect for this "uncommon man."

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Herbert Hoover, December 10, 2010

By 

Rohn W. Bishop "rohnnyb" (Waupun, WI USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: An Uncommon Man: The Triumph of Herbert Hoover (Hardcover)

An Uncommon Man is a great biography of Herbert Hoover, written by the best presidential historian alive. If you have an interest to learn about President Hoover's life, from early childhood in West Branch, Iowa, his days at Stanford, traveling the world in mining, relief efforts following floods, Secretary of Commerce, President of the United States, and 30 years as former President this book has it all. In great detail.

It goes into great detail about the events of his Presidency 1929-1933.

Read the book and ask yourself if there was much he could do during the depression.